The Governor's call, made during a visit to Greenville's Integrated Family Services (IFS) on Thursday, October 9, 2025, follows recent tragedies and highlights the connection between mental health treatment and safer communities.
Spotlight on Pitt County Success
Governor Stein toured Integrated Family Services in Greenville, which is slated to open a new Behavioral Health Urgent Care (BHUC) later this month. This facility will provide immediate and accessible help for individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
“We must have a well-functioning mental health care system that gets people the treatment and support they need to stay healthy and keep us all safe,” said Governor Stein. He stressed the importance of building on successful programs like those in Pitt County "to prevent people from falling through the cracks.”
Natasha Holley, CEO of Integrated Family Services, echoed this sentiment, stating, “The opening of our Behavioral Health Urgent Care is about making help immediate and accessible... Mental health and community safety aren’t separate issues; they’re deeply connected. When we strengthen one, we strengthen the other.”
A Comprehensive Public Safety Approach
The Governor's advocacy comes shortly after he signed House Bill 307 into law, addressing public safety challenges. However, Governor Stein continues to push for a more comprehensive package that focuses on crime prevention.
This strategy includes:
Law enforcement recruitment and retention.
Violence prevention measures.
Increased coordination between law enforcement and mental health professionals.
Pitt County Sheriff Paula Dance praised the collaboration, noting, “Law enforcement officers work hard to deescalate crisis situations and keep people safe, and partnering with mental health professionals makes us even better at our work.”
Critical Interventions in the Justice System
Governor Stein specifically highlighted three points in the criminal justice journey where mental health supports are essential to achieving better outcomes and promoting safety:
Diversion: Steering individuals away from incarceration and into appropriate treatment programs.
In-Prison Treatment: Providing necessary mental health care to people while they are incarcerated.
Reentry Support: Ensuring that people leaving prison succeed by connecting them with essential resources like housing, employment, and health care to promote safer communities and reduce recidivism.
The NCDHHS currently supports various statewide behavioral health initiatives, including mobile crisis, justice-related programs, and reentry assistance. In Pitt County, this includes partnerships with Integrated Family Services for BHUC, mobile crisis, and co-response programs, and with the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office for capacity restoration services.
Call to Maintain Funding
The push for continued investment builds on the historic $835 million allocated for behavioral health in the 2023-2025 North Carolina biennium budget. This funding has supported vital services such as mobile crisis teams, crisis receiving teams, stabilization beds for children, and key justice system programs. Governor Stein is now urging the General Assembly to recommit to these investments to ensure the momentum is not lost.
WNCTimes
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